Communications between an aircraft and a ground station such as an airport are vital to operations. One type of communication system is the aircraft communication addressing and reporting system (ACARS). ACARS is a digital datalink system designed to transmit relatively small messages between an aircraft and a ground station via radio or satellite. One of the initial applications for the ACARS system was to detect and report changes to the flight events which includes out of gate, off the ground, on the ground and into the gate. These flight events are commonly referred to as “Out”, “Off”, “On” and “In” (OOOI) events. In addition to OOOI events other information may be transmitted based on a select detected OOOI event such as information relating to engine, aircraft, operational performance conditions, load and balance. Moreover, information can be transmitted from the ground station to the airplane based on a detected OOOI event. Such information may include flights plans and weather information. The ACARS is controlled by a communication management unit (CMU). One of the functions of the CMU is to route downlinks by means of the most efficient air-ground sub network. The sub networks include very high frequency (VHF) which is the most commonly used and least expensive, satellite communications (SATCOM) which provides worldwide coverage except in the polar regions but is fairly expensive, and high frequency (HF) which provides coverage in the polar regions. As stated above, the amount of data in the communications using ACARS has to be relatively small due to communication technology restraints.
For faster downloads, aircraft gatelink systems have been developed that use 802.11 or cell phone communications. This allows for greater amounts of data to be communicated between the airplane and the airline ground system. Such data could include more extensive aircraft data, databases and operational software as well as other data that requires a relatively large bandwidth. The aircraft gatelink, however, must be disabled during flight for fight safety reasons. Accordingly, all the data transmissions must be communicated when the airplane is on the ground within the communication range of a gatelink network. One method of engaging a gatelink system is by using weight on wheels (WOW) sensors to determine when the aircraft is on the ground. An issue that needs to be addressed at busy hub airports involves controlling when aircrafts are allowed to access the gatelink system in order to maintain a relatively high throughput. Another issue with gatelink systems is that the cost of using gatelinks varies from airport to airport depending on who owns and operates the gatelink installation at that airport. For example, if the airport facility owns and operates the gatelink installation then it can be more costly to use than if the gatelink network is operated by the airline itself.
For the reasons stated above and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the present specification, there is a need in the art for an efficient and effective control system that provides more finesse in determining when to enable the gatelink system than just using a WOW sensor.